Center of gravity calculator



ug- 29, 1950 P. NILAKANTAN 2,529,423

CENTER OF GRAVITY CALCULATOR Filed Sept. 23, 1946 ,4free/ver Patented Aug. 29, 1950 UNITED` STATES PATENT FFICE CENTER F GRAVITY CALCULATOR Parameswar Nilakantan, New Delhi, India Application September 23, 1946, Serial No. 698,616

(rc1. zes-61) 3 Claims. l

My invention relates generally to calculators for locating the center of gravity of loaded aircraft and more particularly to devices of this nature which employ an impedance network in which the values of the impedance elements represent the values of elements of a dynamic system such as a loaded aircraft with various disposable load items therein.

Previous calculators for this purpose have been designed but have usually been the equivalent of simplified mechanical scale models of the craft, in which miniature weights or springs are used to represent the Various load items in the craft.

It is well known that the location of the center of gravity is of extreme importance in maintaining level and efficient flight of a loaded aircraft. It is desirable, furthermore, to be able to predetermine the location 0f the center of gravity without having to load the plane rst. Heavy duty weighing scales have in the past been employed to measure the downward thrust at each of the members of the landing gear of a loaded airplane on the ground. From such measurements ,it is a simple problem to calculate the center of gravity position. This method has, however, several distinct disadvantages. For one thing, it is cumbersome, time-consuming, and not particularly accurate. Furthermore, if the position of center of gravity is found to be unsatisfactory, the load must be rearranged to shift the center of gravity to a suitable position. Still further, if, as has been done, the weighing devices are attached to the plane itself, they add useless weight, and if they break down, render a determination of the center of gravity position on that particular plane impossible until repairs have been made.

Bearing in mind the previous efforts to provide suitable apparatus of this type, and bearing in mind the deficiencies therein, it is a major object of my invention to provide apparatus of the class described Whichis self-contained and can be operated on the ground at a point remote from the craft for which calculation is to be made. d

It is another object to provide such apparatus which is direct reading.

It is still another object to provide such apparatus which is readily adapted for use in connection with craft of various sizes, models, and capacities.

Briefly my invention contemplates the use of an electrical bridge network in which the elements of the bridge have electrical values which are proportional to, and therefore represent the dynamic elements of the balance system of static torques acting on an aircraft in flight, or for that matter, on any loaded craft.

The position, in a horizontal plane, of the center of gravity of an aircraft in level flight may be determined from the following equation: Let =the vector distance of the center of gravity from a datum point.

where w1 is the weight of a load item i, -n is the number of items, :ci is the corresponding moment arm measured from the datum point, and mi is the corresponding moment.

The general object then of the present invention is to substitute an electrical network for the above-mentioned system of forces, which network shall have electrical or electronic elements each corresponding in value to one of the dynamic elements in the system of static torque, e. g., moments and weights. y

While various electronic elements such as capacitors, inductances, etc., may be employed to represent the dynamic elements, I have found it convenient to substitute voltages for moments, resistances for weights, and currents for distances or moment arms. Thus the analogy of equations is between Ohms law, E=IR, and the law of moment, M :DF where D is the moment arm and F a force acting thereon. It is obvious that when applied to the present problem involving center of gravity, all forces are weights, and hence vertical in direction, and all moment arms are therefore horizontal.

The analogy in the present instance may be further envisioned by considering a voltage proportionalto the algebraic sum of the moments of a dynamic system, as applied across a resistance proportional to the algebraic sum of the weights acting on the system. The resulting current owing in the resistance will then be proportional to the horizontal distance of the center of gravity from the datum point of the system around which the moments were taken.

For a detailed description of an electrical circuit meeting the above conditions, reference should now be had to the attached drawings illustrating my invention and the mode of its operation wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of an airplane in night with various load items indicated thereon; and

Fig. 2 is a circuit diagram illustrating a resistance network such as may be employed in calculating the position of the center of gravity of the airplane shown` in Fig. 1.

In the` drawings, the numbers I through, lll indicate the location of ten disposable lcad items in the airplane depicted in Fig. 1. The letter 7c, in Fig. 1 indicates a datum point which in the present instance has been selected to-.correspondy to the center of gravity of ther airplane. when empty. The horizontal distances of' each load item are indicated by dimensionsgx.- each having a subscript corresponding to the loadvitem to which it refers. be considered as negative since weight applied forwardv of lc produces counter-clockwisel moment. Forv purposes of the presentvillustration load items lI and 2 may be considered,asthefpilotf and co-pilot, items', 4, and6,',|",' 8f andf'S' as .passengers, 5' as fuel, andil.. as cargo.l The weight of the various items willbe referredgtobythe letter w with a subscriptcorresponding to the. number of' theV item referred to.

From the foregoing discussion and-.by reference to the equation above given, it will be seen that the position, ofthe vcenter of gravity relative to point la in the loaded airplane in Fig. 1 is equal tortheza'lgeloraic Sumpf the quantities riwi-l-:rzwz riowiq divided-by the total weight of the load items and the empty plane. It should be noted :that since thezweight wo of the empty plane is applied at the datum point, its momentv is equal to Zero.

If the various. weights and positions of :their-y application are known :then the l center of gravity position can of course-becalcul-ated, but as` such calculationis time consumingV andisubject to human-error, itis-desirablefto=obtain the resultsquick-ly and automatically and b-yfmeans @of J a calculator which `is .direct reading.:

Theircuit An electric circuit forsolving the equation given above is illustrated-in-Fig; 2.1 In the circuit diagram, the junctures haveb'een identiedby theletters A, B,"C,VD, E, F, H, andJ forreference hereinafter.- Currents ci, c2, c3, have also been indicated adjacent thecircuit branches through which they flow; Thecircuit comprises anumber of moment representing resistors, Ro, Ri',

. T; c ircuit'balancing resistors Rw, Rx, Ry',

andl current limiting -resistor- RZ; galvanometers G1, G2, and-G3;a battery I2; -andgaswitch I3:- The two resistors Ro -and--roarev also included-and represent the moment and-weight respectively-y ofathefempty plane. It isto be noted'that Toincludes Y. the resistance of:- the galvanometer` G3.

Each of theresistors Ro...1o and To.. .1o isy Variable. between zero and a `maximum value proportional tothe maximum weight orzmoment A; convenientratio1between dy-` minus, 3 ma. and. as will be hereinafter de-r scribed, indicates the positionY of.V theloaded oen- Distances forward of 7c are to- Rm; weight representing'resistors To, ri,`

of the point K. G1 is a milliammeter capable of indicating on the order of 3 ma. and G2 is a current null indicator preferably provided with a removable shunt as is customary in such instruments. The battery I2 has a voltage on the order of 2 volts. The resistors Rw are equal and have a value in the order of 10 ohms. Rx, Ry, and Rz have values in the order of 50 ohms, and are variable.

Operation To operate the calculator, the moment and load resistors are each set to values proportional to the, dynalrlicy quantity they represent. If any load item is to be omitted the corresponding resistorz is` set atzero. If any moment arm is equal to zero the corresponding resistor is set at Zero.- Accordingly, since the datum point is attire-center of gravity of the empty airplane, the moment arm of the empty airplane is equal to ze,r oand the, resistor Ro is set to` zero.. The weight ofjtheernpty plane still enters into. the calculationhowever, and hence resistorro isset to .corresp ond thereto.A For convenience in setting, theresistors may beV calibratedV directly in.

units ofv the quantity they represent, for eX- ample, theweightresistors To. ..10 pounds and the moment resistors Ro. 1o inch-pounds. an additional convenience the momentresistor mayalsohave scalecalibrations in weight units alone, sincegenerally speaking. each loaditem.`

will be ,applied alwaysat ythe samepoint in. the` airplane and' hence` the, moment., arm is not a variable.

Having adjusted. vthe moment and weight resistorslthe switchjS isclosed and Athe ,balancing resistorsRXHand RyA adjusted untilav null is-,in-f- The-v currentv limiting resistorRZ is -then adjusted until'apredicated by,` the galvanometer- G2.

determinedcurrenn as indicated by the galvanomveter G1, ilowsinarm lAD ofthe circuit. The value of this 1predetermined currentis a circuit constant as., will .be pointed out .later in the descrpion.

The position of the vcenter of gravity in inches.;i

forward. or aft ofthe point lc is now readA directly from v,the galvanom'eter Gc.

Theory of operation;

Referringqto the lanalogy stated .earlier in the specification it will vbe remembered that the purposeotthecircuit is .to apply'a-voltage proporsum of the weights.

sistors ru-l-rl -i-rio, and-.hence isproportional. tol the algebraic sum4 of the weight W0+W1 -I-,W'a -I-Wiu.-

voltage equal t0l thev algebraic sum ot themoments-whereuponthe currentY through galvanometer G3 will be proportional to thedistanceof the center of gravity from the datum point-lc.v

Considerationl of.- the following discussion will show that this is accomplished:

When the-resistors RX and `Ry are adjusted as described to produce a-v null in they galvanometer G2,two conditions obviously obtain:

1. The potential at the junctures B and'F. are identical; andv 2.. The currents Czare equal in the branches.

v ABCD and, AFED.;,

ter of gravity directly in inches forward or aft Since equal currents Vflow through all the mo- .'y

Following the analogy then, ,the lremainder of the circuit ele-.1 mentmust'serve to apply acrossjunctures CE, az

mentlresistors-Rfl R1, etcf, the1potentialdrcp'f1 across each) will be proportional to the-resistancef valuesth'ereof. As will be seenfrom'the direc tion of theecurrentarrows Ci, thepotential at thejuncture B willV be -higherthan that'at C';

and at thejunctureE, lower than at the -junc ture F;

rIhus the potential difference or-voltage-be tween junctures C andE isproportional tothe algebraic sum of the voltage drop across the resistors Rc. ..10, and hence is proportional tol the algebraic sum` of the resistances thereof, and Q. E. D;, thevoltage acrossjuncture CE-is proportional to thehalg'ebraicsum` of moments as desired. It `will benoted thatmoments ape plied forward of point Icare represented by re-" sistance in thebranchFEof the circuit and "mo-'- ments applied aft'ofpoint lcfarerepresentedby resistance in the ubranch BC.

Obviously, if the algebraic sum of the moments x about the pointlc were zero,` .then the displace-k ment of the center of gravity wouldjbe Zero;

whichwouldbe indicated byI the'fact thatno current would iiow in the galvanometer G3. This is true in the circuit since, if the total resistance of resistors R14-R2 R5 were equal to the total Lresistanceof ``R`o-l-Rs{-Ri Rio, then no potential difference exists between thejuncturesffor example, cargo at I0, then resistance Rio is` increased and the potential `at the juncture C.' becomesless `than at the juncture E.` Thisresults in current flow in the direction indicated.` by the arrow c3. Conversely the addition of fuel at "5 (forward of K) increases the resistance of the circuit branch FE, and the current flow through the galvanometer G3 is in a direction opposite to the arrow ca. Thus it will be seen that since a voltage proportional to the algebraic sum of the moments is applied across a resistance proportional to the algebraic sum of the weights, the value of the current through this resistance, i. e., that indicated by the galvanometer G3, will be proportional to the distance of the center of 1 gravity from the datum point k, and that the direction of current flow in galvanometer Gs will indicate the direction (forward or aft) of the center of gravity from the datum point k.

As has been previously stated, the current through the galvanometer G1 is a circuit constant. This is true since the currents C2 flowing through the circuit branches BC and FE are equal to one-half of the current C1 through the branch DA and must be constant to effect the desired potential voltage drop across the moment resistors Rc Ric. Accordingly, the galvanometer G1 may, if desired, be provided with a single scale division to indicate the proper setting of the current limiting resistor Rz;

As has been noted, the resistance ro includes the resistance of the galvanometer G3, and hence can never be adjusted to zero. This range of adjustment is never necessary, however, since ro represents the weight of airplane and hence will always have a nite positive value.

The impedance elements of the circuit illustrated in TEig. 2 are all direct current resistors and the power source is the battery. These resistors, however, may be replaced by other impedance elements such as for example, condensers or chokes, and by appropriate circuit modification, well known in the art, an alternating current generator can be used in place of the battery.

It is obvious furthermore that the circuit disclosed herein may, with little or no modification,

be usedltofsolveiany :equation of` the `general formi 1 whereiny=f(:rfandz) and 4where mand y are physicalquantities and ais a product of .r and y. The `circuit shownherein,` while subject to modication` within the spirit of the invention is fully-capableofi-'achieving the objects and providing' the' advantages hereinbefore stated.

Therefore, I do notmean to be limited to the form shown and described herein, but rather to the scope of the 'appended claims.

I claim:

1. In ran. electrical calculator for solving a'dye namic equation;` thecombination of: a plurality ofelectric impedance elements each adapted to havearr-impedancevalue proportional to one of a system Vof weights Vrepresented by said equation, saidelements'being connected in a circuit branch betweenrtwo juncture points in a manner to prol duce between saidpoints a total impedance pro--- portional to the sum of said weights; a pluralityof impedanceseach adapted to have a value proportional to a positive moment acting on said system;A said Vpositive moment Iimpedances being connected between oneY of said two points and a third point a plurality of impedances each adapted to have a value proportional to a negative moment acting on said System, said negative moment impedances being connected between the otherofsaidrst mentioned two points and a fo'urth` point; 'circuit means including a plurality ofbalancingimpedances to `pass equal currents through said moment impedances while maintaining, zero potential between said third-and fourth points;` said last circuit means being adapted and connected between said` first'two and third and fourth points in a manner to effect between said rst two points, a voltage equal to the algebraic sum of the voltage drops across said moment impedances; and detecting means responsive to current flow in said circuit branch adapted to indicate a distance proportional to the value thereof whereby to solve said equation in terms of distance.

2. In an electrical calculator for solving dynamic equations, the combination of: adjustable impedance means to produce an electrical impedance in a circuit branch, the value of said impedance being pr-oportional to the sum of a plurality of weights acting on a loaded craft impedance means connected in a second circuit branch between one of said two points and a, third juncture point adapted to produce an impedance therebetween proportional to the sum of positive Imoments about a datum point and acting on said craft by reason of said weights; other impedance means connected in a third circuit branch between the other of said first two points and a fourth juncture point, adapted to produce animpedance therebetween proportional to the sum of the negative moments about said datum point and acting on said craft; a source of electrical power including current adjusting means operatively connected thereto; a pair of fixed impedance elements of equal value each having one terminal thereof connected to the same terminal of said power source, one of said pair of elements having its other terminal connected to said third juncture point and the other element having its other terminal connected to said fourth juncture point; a pair of adjustable impedance elements each connected between the other terminal of said power source and one of said first two points respectively, whereby to furnish a return path f-or current flowing from said source, through said fixed elements, through said second and third branches to said first two points, said adjustableV elements being adapted to equalize said current, means operatively associated with said power source to indicate the value of current thereof; a null indicator connected between said third and fourth points adapted to indicate zero potential therebetween; and indicating -means responsive to current in said iirst circuit branch adapted to indicate the vector value proportional tc current therein whereby, when said pair of adjustable elements are adjusted to produce said zero potenn tial as indicated by said null indicator, and said current adjusting means is adjusted to eiect predetermined currents between said second and third branches, the voltage between said first two points is proportional to the algebraic sum of moments acting on said craft andthe current in said first branch is propotional to and hence index of the position of the center of gravity of said loaded craft.

3. In an electrical calculator for solving a dynamic equation, the combination of: rst resistor means connected between two juncture points and adapted to produce therebetween a resistance proportional to the sum of a system of weights represented in said equation; second resistor means connected between one of said points and a third juncture point, said second resistor means being adapted to produce a resistance proportional to the sum of positive moments about a datum point and acting on said system; third resistor means connected between the other of said first two points and a fourth juncture point, said third resistor means being adapted to produce a resistance proportional to the sum of negative moments about said datum point and acting on said system; current source means adjustable to produce a predetermined current; current dividing means adapted to divide current from said source means into two secondary currents and pass the same through said second and third resisto-r means respectively, said dividing means being further adapted to produce equal resistance between said source means and said third and fourth points respectively; a pair of balancing resistors having common connection to said source means and each connected to one of said rst two points whereby said balancing resistors are adapted to equalize said secondary currents through said second and third resistor means; and null indicating means operatively associated with said dividing means whereby to indicate equality of said secondary currents; and detecting means responsive to current through said first resistor means adapted to indicate a value proportional to the current therein whereby to solve said equation in terms of distance.

PARAMESWAR NILAKANTAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,893,009 AWard Jan. 3, 1933 2,373,504 schiieben et ai Apr. 10, 1945 2,443,098 Dean June 8, 1948 

